In order to automatically perform an accept/reject testing of product appearance inspection in production lines, a method for automatically executing the accept/reject testing by obtaining an image of an inspection target with a camera has been proposed in recent years.
For example, there has been a method for improving inspection precision by selecting a main inspection logic again from a plurality of logics defined through an image processing algorithm (rule), depending on variations in production environments (see, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2007-327848).
Meanwhile, there has been developed a method for automatically generating an image processing algorithm (machine learning) using images collected in advance and teacher data of the accept/reject testing on those images.
For example, there has been a method for switching a new algorithm by newly generating another image processing algorithm different from the ongoing image processing algorithm based on the images obtained, in the case where an image is input, which cannot be handled with the ongoing image processing algorithm during the operation of a line (see, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2007-293732).